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| Ukraine moves against pro-Russian gunmen in East, triggering bloody gun battle | Ukraine moves against pro-Russian gunmen in East, triggering bloody gun battle |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| MOSCOW — The conflict between pro-Russian gunmen and Ukrainian authorities turned bloody on Sunday, with one security serviceman killed and reports of people wounded on both sides, escalating the struggle for the eastern part of the country a week after separatists began systematically occupying government buildings. | MOSCOW — The conflict between pro-Russian gunmen and Ukrainian authorities turned bloody on Sunday, with one security serviceman killed and reports of people wounded on both sides, escalating the struggle for the eastern part of the country a week after separatists began systematically occupying government buildings. |
| Gunfire — the first reported between authorities and pro-Russian separatists — was set off as Ukraine declared an “anti-terrorist” operation Sunday using the Army against a burgeoning revolt in the Donetsk region over the weekend. | Gunfire — the first reported between authorities and pro-Russian separatists — was set off as Ukraine declared an “anti-terrorist” operation Sunday using the Army against a burgeoning revolt in the Donetsk region over the weekend. |
| “The blood of Ukrainian heroes has been shed in a war which the Russian Federation is waging against Ukraine,” President Oleksandr Turchynov said in an address to the nation Sunday evening. “The aggressor has not stopped and is continuing to sow disorder in the east of the country.” | “The blood of Ukrainian heroes has been shed in a war which the Russian Federation is waging against Ukraine,” President Oleksandr Turchynov said in an address to the nation Sunday evening. “The aggressor has not stopped and is continuing to sow disorder in the east of the country.” |
| The armed assaults on government buildings in the Donetsk region, close to the Russian border, alarmed not only the leadership in Kiev — which accused Moscow of a coordinated campaign of aggression against Ukraine — but also those in the West. The attacks, officials said, were reminiscent of the shadowy invasion of the Crimean Peninsula, which resulted in its annexation by Russia last month. | The armed assaults on government buildings in the Donetsk region, close to the Russian border, alarmed not only the leadership in Kiev — which accused Moscow of a coordinated campaign of aggression against Ukraine — but also those in the West. The attacks, officials said, were reminiscent of the shadowy invasion of the Crimean Peninsula, which resulted in its annexation by Russia last month. |
| “Well, it has all the telltale signs of what we saw in Crimea,” U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.” “It’s professional, it’s coordinated, there’s nothing grass-roots-seeming about it.” | “Well, it has all the telltale signs of what we saw in Crimea,” U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos.” “It’s professional, it’s coordinated, there’s nothing grass-roots-seeming about it.” |
| If the attacks continued, she warned, the United States would intensify its sanctions against Russia. As for Ukraine, it lost Crimea without firing a shot and has vowed not to repeat the mistake in the east. | If the attacks continued, she warned, the United States would intensify its sanctions against Russia. As for Ukraine, it lost Crimea without firing a shot and has vowed not to repeat the mistake in the east. |
| Although the West has been cautioning Ukraine against starting a shooting war with the separatists for fear that it would offer Russia a pretext for invasion, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said he had no alternative but to begin an “anti-terrorist” campaign Sunday after days of urging separatists to go home peacefully. | Although the West has been cautioning Ukraine against starting a shooting war with the separatists for fear that it would offer Russia a pretext for invasion, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said he had no alternative but to begin an “anti-terrorist” campaign Sunday after days of urging separatists to go home peacefully. |
| Russia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement Sunday night calling Ukraine’s actions “criminal,” adding that “it is now the West’s responsibility to prevent civil war in Ukraine.” | Russia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement Sunday night calling Ukraine’s actions “criminal,” adding that “it is now the West’s responsibility to prevent civil war in Ukraine.” |
| Turchynov gave the separatists a deadline of Monday morning to surrender the buildings and leave under amnesty. Last week, they were given a deadline of Friday to do the same. The offer was ignored. | |
| Sunday night, there was little evidence that Russian supporters had any inclination to retreat. Last Monday, they overran the Donetsk regional administration building and have held it ever since. Saturday they took Donetsk regional police headquarters while other men in camouflage overwhelmed the Slavyansk police department, 55 miles from Donetsk. By Sunday they had stormed other towns in the region. | Sunday night, there was little evidence that Russian supporters had any inclination to retreat. Last Monday, they overran the Donetsk regional administration building and have held it ever since. Saturday they took Donetsk regional police headquarters while other men in camouflage overwhelmed the Slavyansk police department, 55 miles from Donetsk. By Sunday they had stormed other towns in the region. |
| A captain in Ukraine’s security service was shot to death Sunday in a fight outside Slavyansk, Turchynov said, and two colonels were wounded. Four local residents were wounded, according to other reports. | A captain in Ukraine’s security service was shot to death Sunday in a fight outside Slavyansk, Turchynov said, and two colonels were wounded. Four local residents were wounded, according to other reports. |
| The annexation of Crimea has been wildly popular in Russia. In Moscow, Russian flags now hang from many balconies. President Vladimir Putin’s ratings are higher than ever. Even so, there are objections, to the invasion and to the Russian media’s coverage, which has presented Ukraine’s Russian-speakers under threat and in need of protection. Moscow considers the Kiev government illegitimate, and the news media routinely calls it a “fascist junta” in the pay of the United States. | The annexation of Crimea has been wildly popular in Russia. In Moscow, Russian flags now hang from many balconies. President Vladimir Putin’s ratings are higher than ever. Even so, there are objections, to the invasion and to the Russian media’s coverage, which has presented Ukraine’s Russian-speakers under threat and in need of protection. Moscow considers the Kiev government illegitimate, and the news media routinely calls it a “fascist junta” in the pay of the United States. |
| About 10,000 demonstrators in Moscow rallied Sunday to protest such coverage — and a wider crackdown on independent media in a “March of Truth.” Some carried Ukrainian flags. Others had posters supporting Ukrainians. They were far fewer than the tens of thousands who marched along the same route March 15 to demonstrate against Russian intervention in Ukraine. | About 10,000 demonstrators in Moscow rallied Sunday to protest such coverage — and a wider crackdown on independent media in a “March of Truth.” Some carried Ukrainian flags. Others had posters supporting Ukrainians. They were far fewer than the tens of thousands who marched along the same route March 15 to demonstrate against Russian intervention in Ukraine. |
| Trouble roiled one town after another in Ukraine over the weekend. Mariupol, a city of nearly 500,000 in the Donetsk region, was beset by several hundred separatists Sunday who occupied the city council and raised Russian and “Donetsk Republic” flags, recently introduced by separatists. Local news reports said the attackers called themselves “the people’s army of Donbass,” which refers to the region around Donetsk. | Trouble roiled one town after another in Ukraine over the weekend. Mariupol, a city of nearly 500,000 in the Donetsk region, was beset by several hundred separatists Sunday who occupied the city council and raised Russian and “Donetsk Republic” flags, recently introduced by separatists. Local news reports said the attackers called themselves “the people’s army of Donbass,” which refers to the region around Donetsk. |
| The city council in Makeyevka, about 16 miles east of Donetsk, was also seized, local reporters said, and about a thousand demonstrators rallied outside wearing black and orange St. George ribbons, which represent the Soviet victory in World War II and have been adopted as an emblem of pro-Russian sentiment. | The city council in Makeyevka, about 16 miles east of Donetsk, was also seized, local reporters said, and about a thousand demonstrators rallied outside wearing black and orange St. George ribbons, which represent the Soviet victory in World War II and have been adopted as an emblem of pro-Russian sentiment. |
| The police station, city council and prosecutor’s office in the small town of Yenakiev, 40 miles east of Donetsk, were seized Sunday, according to Ukrainian newspaper reports. Former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, who has been accused of helping Moscow stir up unrest, comes from the town. | The police station, city council and prosecutor’s office in the small town of Yenakiev, 40 miles east of Donetsk, were seized Sunday, according to Ukrainian newspaper reports. Former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, who has been accused of helping Moscow stir up unrest, comes from the town. |
| Yanukovych fled to Russia in February after three months of demonstrations against his government in Kiev, set off by his refusal to sign an agreement for closer cooperation with the European Union. Instead, he wanted to pursue economic ties with Russia, an inclination more popular in the Russian-speaking east than the rest of the country. | Yanukovych fled to Russia in February after three months of demonstrations against his government in Kiev, set off by his refusal to sign an agreement for closer cooperation with the European Union. Instead, he wanted to pursue economic ties with Russia, an inclination more popular in the Russian-speaking east than the rest of the country. |
| In Kramatorsk, a city of 200,000 about 60 miles north of Donetsk, the police department was captured Saturday night by heavily armed men who were shooting at the building and in the air, in a tense scene shown in an online video. The city council building also was reported to be in separatist control. | In Kramatorsk, a city of 200,000 about 60 miles north of Donetsk, the police department was captured Saturday night by heavily armed men who were shooting at the building and in the air, in a tense scene shown in an online video. The city council building also was reported to be in separatist control. |
| Police and residents of the small town of Krasniy Liman reportedly fought off an attempt to take offices there. | Police and residents of the small town of Krasniy Liman reportedly fought off an attempt to take offices there. |
| In the Kharkiv region north of Donetsk, 50 people were injured when separatists attacked a pro-Ukrainian rally with sticks and stun grenades, local police reported. No violence was reported in Luhansk, in the easternmost part of Ukraine. | In the Kharkiv region north of Donetsk, 50 people were injured when separatists attacked a pro-Ukrainian rally with sticks and stun grenades, local police reported. No violence was reported in Luhansk, in the easternmost part of Ukraine. |
| The unrest has been accompanied by the unseen presence of Russian troops along the border. NATO and U.S. officials estimate there are 40,000 there. Russia consistently has denied that the troops are a threat. | The unrest has been accompanied by the unseen presence of Russian troops along the border. NATO and U.S. officials estimate there are 40,000 there. Russia consistently has denied that the troops are a threat. |
| Turchynov’s announcement that the Army would be used helped solved the problem of local police, many of whom were reportedly defecting to the pro-Russian side. And the Army might also be a more appropriate force to use against potential invasion. | Turchynov’s announcement that the Army would be used helped solved the problem of local police, many of whom were reportedly defecting to the pro-Russian side. And the Army might also be a more appropriate force to use against potential invasion. |
| The Ukraine army, however, is poorly equipped, and U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Sunday it was time for the United States to do something about it. | The Ukraine army, however, is poorly equipped, and U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Sunday it was time for the United States to do something about it. |
| “We ought to at least, for God’s sake, give them some light weapons with which to defend themselves,” McCain said on CBS’s “Face The Nation.” | “We ought to at least, for God’s sake, give them some light weapons with which to defend themselves,” McCain said on CBS’s “Face The Nation.” |